System, method and apparatus for enabling transactions using a biometrically enabled programmable magnetic stripe

• US 20040133787A1
• Filed: 10/07/2003
• Published: 07/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innovation Connection Corporation
• Original Assignee: Innovation Connection Corporation
• Inventors: Doughty, Ralph O., Antaki, Patrick R.
• Granted Patent: US 8,015,592 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/186
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/327 Short range or proximity payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/347 Passive cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/253 visually
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/257 electronically G07C9/26 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/26 using a biometric sensor integrated in the pass
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0806 Details of the card record carriers per se G06K
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/10 together with a coded signal , e.g. in the form of personal identification information, like personal identification number [PIN] or biometric data
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1075 PIN is checked remotely

Abstract

The present invention provides a system, method and apparatus that includes a user device having a magnetic field generator disposed within a substrate that is normally inactive, a biometric sensor mounted on the substrate, a memory disposed within the substrate and a processor disposed within the substrate that is communicably coupled to the magnetic field generator, the biometric sensor and the memory. The processor is operable to process biometric information received from the biometric sensor to verify that a user is authorized to use the apparatus and activate the magnetic field generator when the user is verified. A power source is also disposed within the substrate. The magnetic field generator can create a spatially varying magnetic signal using a magnetic stripe and one or more induction coils, or create a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a substrate;

a magnetic field generator disposed within the substrate that is normally inactive;

a biometric sensor mounted on the substrate;

a memory disposed within the substrate;

a processor disposed within the substrate and communicably coupled to the magnetic field generator, the biometric sensor and the memory, wherein the processor is operable to process biometric information received from the biometric sensor to verify that a user is authorized to use the apparatus and activate the magnetic field generator when the user is verified; and

a power source disposed within the substrate and electrically connected to the magnetic field generator, the biometric sensor and the processor.

2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the magnetic field generator creates a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

3. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the magnetic field generator comprises a programmable magnetic stripe.

4. The apparatus as recited in claim 3, wherein the programmable magnetic stripe comprises:

a magnetic stripe either mounted on the substrate or disposed within the substrate;

one or more induction coils disposed within the substrate underneath the magnetic stripe; and

a controller disposed within the substrate that is connected to the one or more induction coils and operable to generate a spatially varying or time-varying magnetic signal via the one or more induction coils and the magnetic stripe.

5. The apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein the magnetic signal includes binary data describing a user name, user number and apparatus expiration date.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 4, wherein the magnetic stripe contains three-tracks and each track contains a set of magnetic data cells.

7. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor comprises a smart card processor and an ASIC chip.

8. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the power source is controlled by a power management unit.

9. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the power source is selected from the group consisting of a battery, a piezoelectric generator, a solar panel, an electromagnetic energy converter;

a kinetic energy converter and combinations thereof.

10. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the power source comprises:

a battery;

a power generator;

a converter electrically connected to the power generator and operable to convert power received from the power generator into power usable by the apparatus or to charge the battery;

a battery management unit connected to the battery; and

a power multiplexer connected to the battery management unit and the converter and operable to determine whether to draw power from the battery management unit, from the converter, or from both.

11. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the biometric sensor is selected from the group consisting of a fingerprint sensor, retina sensor, iris sensor or voice sensor.

12. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the biometric sensor comprises a matrix of points operable to detect high and low points corresponding to ridges and valleys of a fingerprint.

13. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the biometric sensor comprises an emitter and a detector wherein light projected by the emitter is reflected from a user'"'"'s finger onto the detector.

14. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising a user interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the processor and electrically connected to the power source.

15. The apparatus as recited in claim 14, wherein the user interface is selected from the group consisting of a touch pad, one or more buttons, a display and a voice sensor.

16. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising an output interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the processor and electrically connected to the power source.

17. The apparatus as recited in claim 16, wherein the output interface is selected from the group consisting of an antenna for wireless communication and an optical transmitter.

18. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising a smart card interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the processor and electrically connected to the power source.

19. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, further comprising a contactless interface disposed within the substrate that is communicably coupled to the processor and electrically connected to the power source.

20. The apparatus as recited in claim 19, wherein the contactless interface is selected from the group consisting of an antenna for wireless communication and an optical transceiver.

21. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate is semi-flexible.

22. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate is integrated into a card selected from the group consisting of an access card, a credit card, a debit card, an identification card, a mini-card, a security card, a stored value card and a vendor-specific card.

23. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate is integrated into a travel credential selected from the group consisting of a passport, an immigration card and a visa.

24. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate is integrated into a personal communication device selected from a group consisting of a personal data assistant, a telecommunications device, a pager, a computer and an electronic mail transceiver.

25. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the substrate is integrated into a personal device/belonging selected from a group consisting of a watch, a jewelry, a key ring, a tag and eye glasses.

26. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor and the memory are integrated into a single integrated circuit.

27. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the memory contains a biometric analog of a user.

28. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor provides binary data to the magnetic field generator after a user has been authenticated using the biometric sensor.

29. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor deactivates the magnetic field generator after the magnetic field generator has been active for a specified period of time.

30. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor deactivates the magnetic field generator when the biometric sensor no longer detects the authorized user.

31. A method for enabling a transaction using an apparatus containing information associated with one or more users, a magnetic field generator that is normally inactive and a biometric sensor, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving authentication data from the biometric sensor;

determining whether the authentication data is valid for one of the users; and

activating the magnetic field generator and generating a magnetic signal corresponding to the information associated with the authenticated user whenever the authentication data is valid.

32. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the information associated with the authenticated user enables approval of the transaction.

33. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of activating the magnetic field generator and generating a magnetic signal that enables denial of the transaction whenever the authentication data is not valid.

34. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of receiving one or more activation parameters.

35. The method as recited in claim 34, wherein the one or more activation parameters includes detecting data from the biometric sensor, detecting an external signal or receiving data from a user interface.

36. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the transaction is an access transaction, a control transaction, a financial transaction, a commercial transaction or an identification transaction.

37. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the step of determining whether the authentication data is valid comprises comparing the authentication data to one or more biometric templates stored on the device.

38. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the magnetic signal is a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

39. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of deactivating the magnetic field generator after the magnetic field generator has been active for a specified period of time.

40. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of deactivating the magnetic field generator when the biometric sensor no longer detects the authorized user.

41. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of selecting the information to enable the transaction.

42. The method as recited in claim 31, wherein the magnetic signal is a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating the data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

43. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of displaying information to the user.

44. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the step of transmitting the information associated with the user via a wireless communications antenna.

45. The method as recited in claim 31, further comprising the steps of:

receiving power from an external power source in a contactless manner; and

converting the power received from the external power source into power compatible with the apparatus.

46. A computer program embodied in a computer readable medium for enabling a transaction using an apparatus containing information associated with one or more users, a magnetic field generator that is normally inactive and a biometric sensor, the computer program comprising:

a code segment for receiving authentication data from the biometric sensor;

a code segment for determining whether the authentication data is valid for one of the users; and

a code segment for activating the magnetic field generator and generating a magnetic signal corresponding to the information associated with the authenticated user whenever the authentication data is valid.

47. The computer program as recited in claim 46, wherein the information associated with the authenticated user enables approval of the transaction.

48. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for activating the magnetic field generator and generating a magnetic signal that enables denial of the transaction whenever the authentication data is not valid.

49. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for receiving one or more activation parameters.

50. The computer program as recited in claim 49, wherein the one or more activation parameters includes detecting data from the biometric sensor, detecting an external signal or receiving data from a user interface.

51. The computer program as recited in claim 46, wherein the transaction is an access transaction, a control transaction, a financial transaction, a commercial transaction or an identification transaction.

52. The computer program as recited in claim 46, wherein the code segment for determining whether the authentication data is valid comprises comparing the authentication data to one or more biometric templates stored on the device.

53. The computer program as recited in claim 46, wherein the magnetic signal is a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

54. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for deactivating the magnetic field generator after the magnetic field generator has been active for a specified period of time.

55. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for deactivating the magnetic field generator when the biometric sensor not longer detects the authorized user.

56. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for selecting the information to enable the transaction.

57. The computer program as recited in claim 46, wherein the magnetic signal is a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating the data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

58. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for displaying information to the user.

59. The computer program as recited in claim 46, further comprising a code segment for transmitting the information associated with the user via a wireless communications antenna.

60. A system comprising:

one or more user devices, each user device comprising

a substrate,

a magnetic field generator disposed within the substrate that is normally inactive,

a biometric sensor mounted on the substrate,

a memory disposed within the substrate,

a device processor disposed within the substrate and communicably coupled to the magnetic field generator, the biometric sensor and the memory, wherein the processor is operable to process biometric information received from the biometric sensor to verify that a user is authorized to use the apparatus and activate the magnetic field generator when the user is verified, and

a power source disposed within the substrate and electrically connected to the magnetic field generator, the biometric sensor and the device processor;

one or more system interfaces operable to communicate with the user device; and

a system processor communicably coupled to the one or more system interfaces.

61. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the one or more system interfaces includes an optical interface, a smart card interface, a wireless communication interface, a magnetic reader, an initialization interface or a recharger.

62. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising a database communicably coupled to the system processor.

63. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising one or more remote computers communicably coupled to the system processor via a network.

64. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the magnetic field generator creates a time-varying magnetic signal for emulating data obtained from swiping a magnetic stripe card through a magnetic card reader.

65. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the magnetic field generator comprises a programmable magnetic stripe.

66. The system as recited in claim 65, wherein the programmable magnetic stripe comprises:

a magnetic stripe either mounted on the substrate or disposed within the substrate;

one or more induction coils disposed within the substrate underneath the magnetic stripe; and

a controller disposed within the substrate that is connected to the one or more induction coils and operable to generate a magnetic signal via the one or more induction coils and the magnetic stripe.

67. The system as recited in claim 66, wherein the magnetic signal includes binary data describing a user name, user number and apparatus expiration date.

68. The system as recited in claim 66, wherein the magnetic stripe contains three-tracks and each track contains a set of magnetic data cells.

69. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the device processor comprises a smart card processor and an ASIC chip.

70. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the power source is controlled by a power management unit.

71. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the power source is selected from the group consisting of a battery, a piezoelectric generator, a solar panel, an electromagnetic energy converter;

a kinetic energy converter and combinations thereof.

72. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the power source comprises:

a battery;

a power generator;

a converter electrically connected to the power generator and operable to convert power received from the power generator into power usable by the apparatus or to charge the battery;

a battery management unit connected to the battery; and

a power multiplexer connected to the battery management unit and the converter and operable to determine whether to draw power from the battery management unit, from the converter, or from both.

73. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the biometric sensor is selected from the group consisting of a fingerprint sensor, retina sensor, iris sensor or voice sensor.

74. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the biometric sensor comprises a matrix of points operable to detect high and low points corresponding to ridges and valleys of a fingerprint.

75. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the biometric sensor comprises an emitter and a detector wherein light projected by the emitter is reflected from a user'"'"'s finger onto the detector.

76. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising a user interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the device processor and electrically connected to the power source.

77. The system as recited in claim 76, wherein the user interface is selected from the group consisting of a touch pad, one or more buttons, a display and a voice sensor.

78. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising an output interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the device processor and electrically connected to the power source.

79. The system as recited in claim 78, wherein the output interface is selected from the group consisting of an antenna for wireless communication and an optical transmitter.

80. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising a smart card interface mounted on the substrate that is communicably coupled to the device processor and electrically connected to the power source.

81. The system as recited in claim 60, further comprising a contactless interface disposed within the substrate that is communicably coupled to the device processor and electrically connected to the power source.

82. The system as recited in claim 81, wherein the contactless interface is selected from the group consisting of an antenna for wireless communication and an optical transceiver.

83. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the substrate is semi-flexible.

84. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the substrate is integrated into a card selected from the group consisting of an access card, a credit card, a debit card, an identification card, a mini-card, a security card, a stored value card and a vendor-specific card.

85. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the substrate is integrated into a travel credential selected from the group consisting of a passport, an immigration card and a visa.

86. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the substrate is integrated into a personal communication device selected from a group consisting of a personal data assistant, a telecommunications device, a pager, a computer and an electronic mail transceiver.

87. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the substrate is integrated into a personal device/belonging selected from a group consisting of a watch, a jewelry, a key ring, a tag and eye glasses.

88. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the device processor and the memory are integrated into a single integrated circuit.

89. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the memory contains a biometric analog of a user.

90. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the device processor provides binary data to the magnetic field generator after a user has been authenticated using the biometric sensor.

91. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the device processor deactivates the magnetic field generator after the magnetic field generator has been active for a specified period of time.

92. The system as recited in claim 60, wherein the device processor deactivates the magnetic field generator when the biometric sensor no longer detects the authorized user.